Our bags were packed, our house was sold, and there was no going back. The future that seemed so clear and certain just months ago became frightening and vague. We were entering a world that had a different culture, language and expectations. So many questions were rushing through our minds about what awaited us on the other side of the world. The old life that we had once knew - family, friends, work, school - was all in the past; however, my parents were sure that the opportunities that our new life would present would be incomparable to anything that our past held.
My family and I immigrated to the United States from Russia. At the time I was twelve years old. Each and every one of us was faced with